Sad news

The New Geneva Garden!

It's up, it's running and it's full of plants!

Great job everybody who helped make this magic happen

and welcome new gardeners to the Monterey-Geneva

eco-community garden group!  Glad you're here.

Seed Saving Workshop

Hi Folks!

Another spectacular job by our workshop coordinator Katy Tafoya - thanks so much for organizing Katy! 

Please see the attached flyer for more information.  The Seed Saving workshop will be held on September 8 at 9 a.m.  Reservations required athttp://glendaleseedsaving.eventbrite.com/

Please distribute to your friends/family and anyone else that is interested.  We want these gardens to be accessible to everyone and this is the way we are able to do that.  Hope you can attend!

If you have any questions please feel free to contact Katy Tafoya directly at ktafoya@gmail.com.  Also if you have any suggestions or want to see specific workshops, please let her know.  Thanks!

Best,

Alek Bartrosouf

This morning at the garden

Karen's tomatoes are, as usual, stunning

Bronwyn and Melissa's fennel is hypnotic

I love water droplets on these kinds of leaves

and Joan's turnip sculptures are laughing it up.

Paddle the LA River!

Fully-outfitted boating tours will be offered on the Los Angeles River within the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area.  Ticketed tours will take place on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from July 21 - September 29.  Each date will offer one full run at 7AM ($50), one full run at 10:30AM ($50), and a third, shorter tour at 1:30PM ($25). Ticket price covers the cost of labor, equipment, vehicles, training, and insurance.  A variety of guest speakers will offer educational information about wildlife and the environment during the program.

The Paddle the LA River program represents the collective efforts of several environmental organizations uniting to enhance public perception about the Los Angeles River.  By paddling this scenic stretch, people experience first-hand that our urban river is part of an ecosystem that is both beautiful and significant to Los Angeles’ past and future.  Program partners include: Los Angeles Conservation Corps, Mountains Recreation & Conservation Authority, Friends of the Los Angeles River, Urban Semillas, and The River Project as well as The City of Los Angeles and The US Army Corps of Engineers.

More info:

http://www.paddlethelariver.org/Paddle_the_LA_River/Home.html

Small space & container gardening workshop coming!

May 19th at the West garden, 4 - 6pm. 

Click on this flier image to see it bigger.

French lavender for freezies

Hey everybody!

My french lavender bush is now the size of a medium bus. Want some? Clip a bunch, it's yours with my compliments. Plot #10, east garden. Smells great!  Tie up a bundle, it makes a pleasant gift! Put it in water or hang it upside down to dry.

Thanks for a great work day!

Here's a lovely picture of some of our beautiful gardeners. 

What a wonderful crowd and we got so much done!  THANKS EVERYBODY!

Today at the East garden

So pretty, whatever these are called.

This is Joan's poppy

This is Carolyn's dearly departed fruit

These are future plums for us all.

 Things are happening all right.

Steering Committee meeting and more

Hi All,

Just a reminder that we have a SC meeting this Wednesday. Please bring your own copy of the agenda, which you should have gotten in my recent email.

SAVE THE DATE: Our last workday scheduled for this calendar year is March 17, time to be determined. If you have not yet completed your work day requirements, you have to attend so that it fulfills at least one of your two required work days.

Lastly, please keep voting for our project! We're ranked 2nd, and we need to stay in the top 3 through March 15 to win. Here is the link...

http://www.iuowawards.com/Projects.aspx#project|105c2bc7-2491-4f58-9336-e9b0696abe29

Best,

Alek Bartrosouf

Fruit Tree Pruning Workshop

The Coalition for a Green Glendale is proud to share with you some news...

The Monterey Road Eco-Community Garden is hosting a Fruit Tree Pruning Workshop on Saturday 02/25 at 10 a.m. Please see above flyer for detailed information. RSVP is required with Katy Tafoya at ktafoya@gmail.com.

REMEMBER: The Monterey Road Eco-Community Gardens is currently competing for a $5,000 grant. Now through March 15, our project needs to earn enough votes to get up to top-three in the contest. We're currently at 5th but it takes persistent voting to get up top. Please vote (and it can be done once per day) by clicking on this link.

It should take you directly to the garden page. If it doesn't simply search for "Glendale" up at the top and we should be the only project to come up. If you would like a daily reminder to vote now through March 15, let me know. Thanks much for your support!

Best,

Alek Bartrosouf
Coalition for a Green Glendale

Stuffed Acorn Squash recipe

A very delicious recipe from Joan:

Ingredients

• 3 medium acorn squash, quartered lengthwise and seeded

• Coarse salt and ground pepper

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

• 1 1/2 cups chopped scallions (2 bunches; whites and about 2 inches of greens), I used a mix from Trader Joe’s of diced garlic, shallots and onions….

• 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

• 2 large bunches Swiss chard, ribs and stems removed, leaves cut into 1/4-inch ribbons (about 16 cups)

• 2 tablespoons tomato paste

• 1 cup coarse, dried breadcrumbs, such as panko, I made the topping with ½ cup of panko, ½ cup of Parmesan cheese, ½ cup of finely ground pecans and 2 T. of herbs du provance.

• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Directions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Trim bottom of each squash piece so it rests flat. Season squash with salt and pepper and place on a rimmed baking sheet, skin side down. Drizzle with 1/4 cup oil and bake until tender, 45 minutes.

• Meanwhile, in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot, heat 1/4 cup oil over medium-high until smoking. Add scallions and garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add chard and stir to combine. Cover and cook over medium until vegetables are very soft, about 10 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring, until mixture is nearly dry, 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until deep red and fragrant, 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.

• Heat broiler. In a small bowl, combine breadcrumbs and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Fill squash with chard mixture and top with breadcrumb mixture, pressing gently so it adheres. Broil squash until breadcrumbs are browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Your vote counts! Please help.

The Monterey Road Gardens need your help! We are applying for a $5,000 grant and all you need to do to help us get this grant is vote! No need to sign up, no need to register or login, all you do is go to this link, and click on the thumbs up! It can be done DAILY! If you're really into it, turn this link into your home page, click on it once a day, and move on. It takes 2.5 seconds. Please help! Details of our proposed project are in the link here...

www.iuowawards.com

January Newsletter - Coalition for a Green Glendale

Hello and Happy New Year!

This will be a short and sweet newsletter. There are 6 events coming up that we think you should be informed of. It is always helpful for the Coalition to know if you are planning to attend any of these events. Please let us know via reply which you'll be going to. Here they are...

1. Bike Master Plan OUTREACH MEETING - Wednesday January 18 at 7 p.m. (Glendale Police Department 131 N. Isabel)
The Bike Master Plan is finally out. Transportation staff needs your feedback! Even if you aren't a biker this is important infrastructure improvements to provide safe routes for people who want to reduce their dependance on cars to get around. Please come and show your support. If you want to read the plan in advance, see the draft here... http://www.bikeglendale.org/

2. GWP Water Rate Restructure COMMUNITY MEETING - Wednesday January 18 AND 19 at 5:30 p.m. (http://www.glendalewaterandpower.com/news.aspx?item=167) for details and locations.
The Glendale Water and Power is considering a progressive rate structure to replace the flat rate structure that has been used in the past. This new model incorporates simple economic principles to bring in more revenue by minimizing the affect of rate increases to most users. Its very interesting. Come to the meetings to learn more, or ask me.

3. Monterey Road Eco Community Garden VOLUNTEER WORK DAY - Saturday January 21 at 10 a.m. (827 Monterey Road)
Join us for a volunteer session at the gardens! Bring the basics if you have them - gloves, hand shovel, weed puller, a hat, sunscreen, etc. RSVP required here (you can just reply). See attached flyer.

4. Greener Glendale OPEN HOUSE - Monday January 23 at 5 p.m. (633 E. Broadway MSB Room 106) 818-937-8159
The City of Glendale wants your ideas on what the city can do to be more environmentally friendly. You read me right... the city wants YOUR opinion! Please join me and support the Planning Department in making our city go green. See attached flyer.

5. Monterey Road Eco Community Garden WORKSHOP 1 - Saturday January 28 at 10 a.m. (827 Monterey Road) 818-359-0108
The Community Garden on Monterey (near the wash, not the freeway) is hosting its first 2012 community workshop. Come learn from Jeri Huston, a Master Gardener about seeds and what to plant for Spring! RSVP required. You can reply and let me know. See attached flyer.

6. Monterey Road Eco Community Garden WORKSHOP 2 - Saturday February 25 time TBD (870 Monterey Road) 818-359-0108
The Community Garden on Monterey (near the Freeway) is hosting a fruit tree pruning workshop led by Lora Hall, a Master Gardener. This will be an interactive experience and you'll have the opportunity to help us prune our trees! More information later, but save the date!

That is all!

Moving forward, we may consider using a newsletter service online with a fancy format that is easier to read and follow. The board is also meeting later this month to determine the next steps for the Coalition. Stay tuned! We look forward to a fun and productive 2012.

Best,

Alek Bartrosouf
Coalition for a Green Glendale

Monterey Road Community Garden News

Hi Gardeners,

Happy new year! I hope you all enjoyed the holiday break. Unfortunately we didn't get a break from having to water with all this sun, but at least it is temperate.

Anyway, I just want to bring you up to speed about what is coming. Please be sure to save the dates!

1. Steering Committee Meeting

The next Steering Committee meeting is on Wednesday January 11th at 6:30, Glendale Central Library 2nd Floor. I am not sure which room we're in yet. Please give me a call if you plan to attend and can't find us. 818-359-0108. Please see attached Agenda for the meeting. Let me know if you have questions! :)

2. Upcoming Work Days

The only remaining work days for this membership cycle is on January 21st and March 17th. Keep in mind, part of your commitment as a member is to attend at least two of the four work days. If you have not attended the September 17 or June 18 work days, you must attend the January and March work days. If you are not sure how many you have attended, please contact your garden manager (Joan or Alicia).

The January 21st work day also includes a gift-exchange for those who are interested! Please see the evite sent out a few days ago by Alicia and Lucy for more information (thanks Alicia and Lucy!). Please contact them if you have any questions about the gift-exchange or the work day.

3. Upcoming Workshops

There are two scheduled workshops coming up (Thanks to Katy!). Please save the date, and let us know if you plan to attend. See attached flyer.

The Spring Gardening and Seed event is on 01/28 (Saturday) at Garden West from 10 a.m. to noon.
The Fruit Tree Pruning event is on 02/25 (Saturday) at Garden East, time TBD. Flyer will be out soon.

That is all folks.

Hope to see you all at the work day!

Best,

Alek Bartrosouf